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I don't understand what is "BS" about an exceptional warranty. I think most people are happy about a long warranty, regardless of the make of their car. Certainly people who buy Toyotas/Hondas/Nissans buy extended warranties. Hyundai includes the long warranty in the price of the car, the buyer doesn't have to pay extra for it unless he wants to extend the B2B beyond 5 years & 60,000 miles.
Is it a marketing tool? You betcha. Does Hyundai get hammered on warranty claims? Not likely, as they will continue to include it.
It was a factor in the 2 Sonatas we bought, it was a factor to a friend who bought an Azera and to a friend of his who is buying a Tuscon. If some cars are so bullet proof what would they have to lose in offering an equal waranty?
The next time you are in the market, take a serious, objective look at the Azera. You make be pleasantly surprised.
A longer warranty really does mean a company stands behind their product. If they were selling crap, then a long term warranty would hurt them because they would lose money with warranty claims.
I agree, longer warranty doesn't equal quality, however...it does show me a company is willing to put their money where their mouth is.
I actually like looking at the Taurus, even though it's exterior is bland...it is however, distinctive in it's own right. It definitely sports a much better look than past Tauruses. My problem with the interior, even though it's quite cavernous...all the straight lines and hard looking surfaces...it almost looks clinically minimalistic. The interior just doesn't make me want to get in and take a seat. Yet, as I stated before...this is my subjective opinion.
In the end, it's going to boil down to what does it for you.
In general, it's the fact that I have to be somewhere else that motivates me to get into my vehicle. :P
Just like GM now offering the longer warranties, the companies that do this do it because they HAVE TO! Not because the cars are more (or less) troublesome, but because that brand is 'living down' a reputation, the cars sell better, and/or the the car buyers expects the warranty. If Hyundai was still producing that trashy Excel (really the car that created the 'need' for the extended warranty in the first place), they still have the 100k powertrain warranty regardless of how much it might cost them to service it. No one would buy one otherwise.
The day that Toyota/Honda/Nissan start having to lure buyers with a 100k warranty is likely also the day that they have started to lose their grip on the car business. Repair history statistics would indicate that it would cost them less to do so and all three have been making gobs of money so that they all could afford to do it. Well, why don't they do it then? No faith in their own products? Not likely! How about simply that they don't need to - their cars sell just fine - the 'Japanese brand' buyer is expecting a car that can run relatively trouble free for 200k and is willing to pay a little extra for it, the same buyer in a Hyundai showroom is probably worried about it and expects to pay less for it. Hyundai (and GM/others) only warranties its cars the way they do because they are FORCED TO and because the American autobuyer won't give them the time of day without it.
I believe that Hyundai does not provide 100k warranties to its cars sold outside the US, it will be interesting to see if the Azera (and the company's other products) proves to have the same sort of long term quality/reliability as THN products and sells well, if that warranty doesn't disappear.
it is only 'BS' in that it certainly has nothing to do with a car's quality. Extended warranty policies on anything continue to be premier money makers for those that offer them, a rather expensive security blanket for those that need it. My 2 year old Avalon has over 50k on it now and I continue to get calls wanting me to buy an extended warranty - hmmm, wonder why?
The 300C maybe priced a bit high in this category but since Avalon has been mentioned, maybe not. And there's always pre-owned.
I've owned mine since Sept 2004. Has 36K miles. Other than a temperamental rear window (motor/controller replaced) and a leaking transmission seal (replaced about 20k back), I've had no problems. It averages 20 mpg to and from work, and highway driving as high as 28 mpg as long as I keep it under 75 (where the MDS shuts down). It's roomy and quiet and I can sit for 5 hours straight driving without any discomfort.
But the Love came to me the other day driving to work. There were three situations where I wanted to: Merge with traffic from a side street; get on a highway; get out of the way of a "here I come look out" semi. The car's response was instantaneous. Suspension: Solid, no wallowing, no lean, no hop. The steering: Quick, precise. Engine/transmission: Instant power; both the motor AND the transmission were there NOW, as though they were wired directly to my brain rather than through the pedal; no hesitation, yet no jerkiness--just turbine smooth power.
Yes, it has it's faults. The suspension is a bit too firm, and the front end is sensitive (though different tires did a lot to address that). And the styling is something you either love or hate. But it's a heck of a car. And if you DON'T like driving like a little old lady (on a Sun day afternoon...with a floppy hat), you owe it to yourself to check one out.
Both a friend and I owned 2003 Camry's. The quality is no longer there and Toyota was quick to jump on "not covered by warranty."
That's disappointing! Having been a Honda owner since 1977 (two accords spanning 30 years between them), I'd always felt that Honda and Toyota were about neck-and-neck (with Honda being maybe a nostril ahead)! :shades:
Only complaint I had with Honda (which sent me to try the Azera) was the lack of front-end styling... like half of a hard-boiled egg, compared to others' styling.
The Azera's extended warranty helped put me in that driver's seat, and if I have no or very little need of the long warranty, I may very well remain in that make's seat, as the decades go by...
If the assumed high value manufacturers have such great reliability, they would have nothing to lose in offering a comparable warranty to Hyundai, GM, and the others. While they don't HAVE to match them to keep sales up, why not do it anyway? It just doesn't make good business sense. The fact is, they suffer from equipment failures just like everyone else and while their failure rates are slightly lower, they are percieved as being FAR lower. At this point in time, they are riding the wave of their reputation. More power to them but I wouldn't consider it a superior deal to get a lesser warranty.
On the issue of who would expect more or less failures/errors, and thus complain, that could be argued either way. The blissful "high-quality" buyer that just assumes all things Toyonda are the best they can be may take all failures that come along as expected. They may just assume that those poor lost souls who aren't as enlightened as they are and bought some crappy domestic brand or lesser Japanese/Asian brand are suffering far worse than they when in actuality, they may be suffering higher failure rates. This would make them more likely to be complacent and less likely to complain.
Huh? I think it makes perfect sense. Why pour money into something when you don't have to? You don't see 0% financing or 3K rebates on hot cars do you? These long warrantys are the same thing IMO. They are nothing but a selling tool. The fact is the insanely small percentage of major powertrain failures before 100K is very small and the manufacturers know it. The 100K warranty costs them very little and it gives them a reason to be different. Toyota and Honda won't extend their warranty until they can't sell all they can make. I don't see that happening anytime soon. While I agree that the gap is narrowing and GM is coming around (think Saturn Aura) it will still take a long time to win back the scores of buyers that flocked to Toyota and Honda.
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
I'm on my 3rd Hyundai and guess what...I don't worry about it. The warranty is simply peace of mind for me.
So I guess BMW HAS to offer their free maintenance program, huh?
Who's to say that Hyundai wouldn't be offering the warranty if they hadn't gone through what they went through in the beginning. In a way, it's a great selling point because the company is saying that you can buy Toyota or Honda (which are known for their reliability), or you can buy a Hyundai and we're (Hyundai) is so confident about their product that they are willing to stand behind it with the warranty they offer. Heck, even the bumper-to-bumper is 5 year 60K miles...most of the other guys offer only 3/36.
The point is...with gas prices where they are now, folks don't have time to worry about repairs on a vehicle. It's tough enough paying the car note. So the warranty offers a little breathing room in that respsect.
GM is a master of taking something old changing the grill and calling it "new". Lucerne anyone? I haven't driven an Aura yet, but know someone who seriously considered it saying it was an extremely nice driving car. GM is coming around and has some aggresive marketing going on too. I hope the new Impala and G8 are something to talk about, because the competition with the imports will only bring us better cars all the way around.
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
I don't perceive the newest GM offerings to have quality issues either (at least, over the same 'paltry' 100k miles). GM is only 'standing behind' its products because they need to represent a quality that may or may not exist as well as to recover some of that market share they have lost. Hyundai is in the same boat IMO, only with generally better cars.
Whatever the case may be, the company is physically standing behind their product by offering that type of warranty. They are saying that SHOULD something happen with this vehicle...we'll take the load off your shoulders. Toyota, Honda and Nissan...they thank you for paying more for their product and in MOST cases any problems that do come up won't happen until after the 3/36 has run out and then it falls completely on the customer.
Some folks lose their cars when a major repair happens because there's a large number of folks that live paycheck to paycheck and a major repair bill just doesn't get factored in to the budget. Well...with a lengthy warranty or free maintenance plan...all customers have to worry about is paying a car note.
while this may be a tad strongly worded, I think there is a danger of this same sort of thing at your local Toyota and Honda dealers (and factories). Keep in mind also that those German mfgrs. are additionally handicapped by a strong Euro vs. a weak Dollar.
and then I guess that 24k/40k difference in the basic warranties would also be 'minor', especially given that any of these cars should easily pass the 100k mark given any semblance of scheduled maintainence. Not that I'm denying that things do happen in specifically that 60-100k window, but it sure would be much rarer than it happening at all, wouldn't it?
The driver hasn't been keeping up with regular oil changes.
If new, the car was delivered with an inadequate amount of oil in the engine.
The car has a major oil leak.
However, the lack of a dipstick for an owner to be able to check the oil level would simply seem to be another way to force the owner to have to bring the car in to a service person.
For more you can see this and other posts in the same discussion: wa201, "BMW 3-Series Oil Questions" #74, 6 Feb 2007 8:31 pm.
I'm passing that on fyi, but let's don't get sidetracked on this issue since the 3-Series really doesn't belong in this discussion.
At any rate, I'm not really worried about it as my Azera has as dipstick that allows me to check the oil level when ever I need to!
I actually believe that the Azzy limited has more room in the back and trunk room than the Infinity (although not mentioned by anyone in this thread)
I bought my Azzy because it was in my price range but it gave me ALOT of the comforts and luxuries that the Infinity has. (PERIOD!)
I love my Azzy but I hate my original dealership...looking for another one besides College Park Hyundai
Good luck in finding a new home. Like I said before, I've been throroughly pleased with the folks over at Alexandria Hyundai for 5+ years now ('02 Sonata and now my '06 Azera). They have always taken good care of me and my cars. When you get there, ask to speak to the service manager (really good guy) and tell him that Mike Washington sent you over there.
Calm down and look past what you see.
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
Don't get me wrong, I'm not sitting here thinking that Hyundai isn't stretching (to say the least). It's now worse than Ford comparing their Edge to a BMW X-5. Yeah...like any Ford vehicle can compare to any BMW! Anyway, they're simply saying you don't have to spend X-5 money to accelerate like (or faster) than an X-5. :surprise:
Folks really stop needing to be so literal when they watch those commercials.
If you want to get mad about one, get mad at those AXE and TAG body spray for men commercials. I use AXE products here and there and I don't have women attacking me like they suggest in the commercials. :mad:
Me. Well, sorta. I could afford an LS if I chose to do so. Instead, I chose the Freestyle, so I could spend all that extra cash on other things, instead.
Why not compare it to the 300, Maxima or Avalon...none of those are touted as luxury sedans. Of those 3, the one that comes more closely to luxury would be the Avalon. I've driven and ridden in a 300 and Maxima...there is nothing luxury about either of those cars. Just because the 300 slightly resembles a Bentley, doesn't mean it's a luxury car. That is why you don't see it advertised as such.